1997 BUICK CENTURY coolant temperature

To Use the Coolant Heater
1. Turn off the engine.
2. Open the hood and unwrap the electrical cord. The
cord
is attached to the diagonal brace near the
coolant recovery tank.
3. Plug it into a normal, grounded 1 10-volt AC outlet.
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Plugging the cord into an ungrounded outlet
could cause an electrical shock. Also, the wrong
kind
of extension cord could overheat and cause
a fire.
You could be seriously injured. Plug the
cord into a properly grounded three-prong 110-volt AC outlet.
If the cord won’t reach, use a
heavy-duty three-prong extension cord rated for
at least
15 amps.
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4. Before starting the engine, be sure to unplug and
store the cord as it was before to keep it away from
moving engine parts. If you don’t, it could
be damaged.
How long should you keep the coolant heater plugged
in? The answer depends
on the outside temperature, the
kind of oil
you have, and some other things. Instead of
trying to list everything here, we ask that you contact
your Buick dealer in the area where you’ll be parking
your vehicle. The dealer can give you
the best advice for
that particular area.
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Engine Coolant Temperature Light Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
h -
TEMP
This light
tells you that your
engine coolant has
overheated or your radiator
cooling fan is not working.
The light should come on
briefly when your ignition
is turned on to show you
that it is working.
TEMPERATURE
You have a gage that shows
the engine coolant
temperature. If the gage
pointer moves into the red
area, your engine is too hot!
If you have been operating your vehicle under normal
driving conditions, you should pull
off the road, stop
your vehicle and turn
off the engine as soon as possible.
In “Problems on the Road,” this manual shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index. That reading means
the same thing as the warning light.
It means that your engine coolant has overheated.
If you
have been operating your vehicle under normal driving
conditions, you should pull
off the road, stop your
vehicle and turn
off the engine as soon as possible.
In “Problems on the Road,” this manual shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index.
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Change Oil Soon Light Security Light
CHANGE OIL
SOON
Your
CHANGE OIL SOON
light should come on as a
bulb check when you start
the engine. If this light stays
on for about 20 seconds
after
you turn on the
ignition, have the
oil chaneed. SECURITY
This light will come on
when
you turn the key to
START and stay on until the
vehicle starts. It will also
flash if your key
is too dirty
or wet for the PASS-Key I1
system to read the resistor
pellet. See “Pass-Key
11” in
the Index.
When to change your oil also depends
on driving habits
and conditions because they directly affect engine speed,
coolant temperature and vehicle speed. Because of this,
the
CHANGE OIL SOON light may come on as early as
2,000 miles (3,200 km) or less for harsh conditions.
Remember, after changing your engine oil, the system
must be reset; with the ignition key
in the RUN position,
but
the engine off, fully push and release the accelerator
pedal three times within five seconds.
If the CHANGE
OIL SOON light flashes two times, the system is reset.
However
if the light comes on and stays on for five
seconds,
it did not reset. You’ll need to reset the
system again. If
the resistor pellet is damaged or missing, the light will
come on.
If you’re driving and the SECURITY light comes on
and remains on, your PASS-Key I1 system is not
working properly. Your vehicle is not protected by
PASS-Key
11, and you should see your dealer.
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Heating
On cold days, use HTR with the temperature knob all
the way in the red area. The system will bring in outside
air, heat it and send it to the floor ducts.
If your vehicle has an engine coolant heater, you can use
it to help your system provide warm air faster when it’s
cold outside
(OOF (- 18°C) or lower). An engine coolant
heater warms the coolant your engine and heating
system use to provide heat. See “Engine Coolant
Heater” in the Index.
Ventilation
For mild outside temperatures when little heating or
cooling is needed,
use VENT to direct outside air
through your vehicle. Your vehicle also has the
flow-through ventilation system described later in
this section.
Defogging and Defrosting
Your system has two settings for clearing the front and
side windows.
To defrost the windows quickly, use
FRONT with the temperature knob all the way in the red
area.
To warm passengers while keeping the windows
clear, use
BLEND.
Dual ComforTemp Climate Control
(If Equipped)
With this system, the driver and passenger can maintain
separate temperatures. The system works best
if you
keep your windows closed while using it.
Fan Control
The left knob labeled FAN controls the fan
speed selection.
If the airflow seems very low when the fan knob is turned
to the highest setting regardless of the mode setting, your
passenger compartment
air filter may need to be replaced.
See “Maintenance Schedule’’ in
the Index.
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The air conditioning compressor will run automatically
in this setting unless the outside temperature is below
40°F
(4°C). (Even when the compressor is running, you
can control the temperature.)
Air Conditioning
On very hot days, open the windows long enough to let
hot, inside air escape. This reduces the time for the
vehicle to cool down.
For a quick cool-down on very hot days, use MAX with
the temperature knobs all the way in the blue area. If
this setting is used for long periods of time, the air
in
your vehicle may become too dry.
For normal cooling on
hot days, use NORM with the
temperature knobs in the blue area. The system will
bring in outside air and cool it.
On cool, but sunny days, the
sun may warm your upper
body, but your lower body may not be warm enough.
You can
use BI-LEV and set the temperature knob to a
comfortable setting. The system will bring in outside air
and direct it to your upper body, while sending slightly
warmed air to your lower body.
You may notice this
temperature difference more at some times than others.
Heating
On cold days, use HTR with the temperature knobs all
the way
in the red area. The system will bring in outside
air, heat it and send
it to the floor ducts.
If your vehicle has an engine coolant heater, you can
use
it to help your system provide warm air faster when it’s
cold outside (0°F
(- 1 SOC) or lower). An engine coolant
heater warms the coolant your engine and heating
system use to provide heat. See “Engine Coolant
Heater” in
the Index.
Ventilation
For mild outside temperatures when little heating or
cooling is needed, use
VENT to direct outside air through
your vehicle. Your vehicle also has the flow-through
ventilation system described later in this section.
Defogging and Defrosting
Your system has two settings for clearing the front
and side windows. To defrost
the windows quickly,
use
FRONT.
For maximum defroster performance, set both driver and
passenger temperature controls to the warmest setting.
To warm passengers while keeping the windows clear,
use
BLEND.
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Heating Ventilation System
On cold days, use HTR with the temperature knob all
the way in the red area. The system will bring in outside
air, heat it and send it to the floor ducts.
If your vehicle has an engine coolant heater, you can
use
it to help your system provide warm air faster when it’s
cold outside
(0°F (-18°C) or lower). An engine coolant
heater warms the coolant your engine and heating
system use to provide heat. See “Engine Coolant
Heater” in the Index.
Defogging and Defrosting
Your system has two settings for clearing the front and
side windows.
To defrost the windows quickly, use
FRONT and full hot (90°F (32°C)). Driver sets
temperature and selects high fan speed.
To warm
passengers while keeping the windows clear, push the
AIR FLOW button until WINDSHIELD/FLOOR
appears in the display. Select fan speed for comfort and
windshield clearing performance. Adjust the direction
of
airflow
by moving the
louvered vents.
Your vehicle’s flow-through ventilation system supplies
outside air into the vehicle when it is moving. Outside
air will also enter the vehicle when the air conditioning
fan is running.
If the airflow seems very low when the fan knob is
turned to the highest setting regardless of the mode
setting, your passenger compartment air filter may need
to be replaced. See “Maintenance Schedule” in
the Index.
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Engine Overheating
You will find a coolant temperature gage and a hot
engine warning light on your instrument panel. See
“Engine Coolant Temperature Gage” and “Engine
Coolant Temperature Warning Light” in the Index. You
also have a low coolant warning light on your
instrument panel. See “Low Coolant Light” in the Index.
If Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
Steam from an overheated engine can burn you
badly, even if you just open the hood. Stay away
from the engine if you see
or hear steam coming
from it. Just turn it off and get everyone away
from the vehicle until it cools down. Wait until
there is no sign of steam or coolant before you
open the hood.
If you keep driving when your engine is
overheated, the liquids in
it can catch fire. You or
others could be badly burned. Stop your engine
if
it overheats, and get out of the vehicle until the
engine
is cool.
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Engine Coolant
The cooling s stem in your vehicle is filled with
DEX-COOL engine coolant. This coolant is designed
to remain in your vehicle for
5 years or 150,000 miles
(240 000 km) whichever occurs first, if you add only
DEX-COOL’ extended life coolant.
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The following explains your cooling system and how to
add coolant when it is low.
If you have a problem with
engine overheating or if you need to add coolant to your
radiator, see “Engine Overheating”
in the Index.
A 50/50 mixture of water and DEX-COOL@
coolant will:
0 Give freezing protection down to -34°F (-37°C).
0 Give boiling protection up to 265 OF ( 129 O C).
0 Protect against rust and corrosion.
Help keep the proper engine temperature.
0 Let the warning lights and gages work as
they should.
NOTICE:
When adding coolant, it is important that you use
only
DEX-COOL@ silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL is added to the
system, premature engine, heater core or radiator corrosion may result. In addition, the
engine coolant will require change sooner
-- at
30,000 miles (50 000 km) or 24 months,
whichever occurs first. Damage caused by the use
of coolant other than DEX-COOL@ is not
covered
by your new vehicle warranty.
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